Lithium-ion Battery | Northvolt Adjusts Business Operations with Layoff Plans

Location：Home > > Market Intelligence > Lithium-ion Battery | Northvolt Adjusts Business Operations with Layoff Plans

Lithium-ion Battery | Northvolt Adjusts Business Operations with Layoff Plans

Date：2024-09-10

Font size：A+A-

Keyword tags： Lithium-ion Battery Europe

Swedish battery startup Northvolt announced on Monday that it will reevaluate its business objectives and adjust strategic plans to focus on battery manufacturing and reduce costs. The company will pause part of the battery material production at its flagship factory and plans to lay off staff to address operational challenges and a slowing electric vehicle market.

In a statement on September 9th, the company said it has halted operations at the Northvolt Ett Upstream 1 cathode material plant in Skellefteå, Sweden, which will be "put into care and maintenance until further notice." Northvolt has also sold the Northvolt Fem plant in Borlänge, Sweden, which it had previously acquired for the production of cathode materials. Additionally, Northvolt is seeking partners to support the production at its battery system and module factory in Gdańsk, Poland.

Recently, Northvolt expressed its intention to integrate its subsidiary Cuberg and lithium-metal technology, based in California, USA, into Northvolt Labs in Sweden.

In light of these measures, Northvolt stated it would make "some tough decisions regarding the size of our workforce." This implies that the company will have to implement layoffs. Northvolt did not specify the extent of the job cuts. By the end of 2023, Northvolt had 5,860 employees, including 300 at the suspended Northvolt Ett Upstream 1 cathode active material plant.

However, in terms of battery manufacturing, Northvolt will continue to prepare for large-scale battery production in the future and remains committed to advancing the NOVO battery factory in Gothenburg, Sweden (the largest battery factory in Europe), Northvolt Drei in Heide, Germany, and Northvolt Six in Montreal, Canada—although Northvolt recently announced a delay in the timeline for the Canadian battery factory.

According to the business daily Dagens Industri, Northvolt's financial situation significantly deteriorated at the end of Q2. The battery manufacturer has been plagued by production delays and low yields. In May, BMW canceled an order worth €2 billion ($2.2 billion) with Northvolt due to these delays.

After a series of setbacks such as production delays and the cancellation of an order from BMW, Northvolt said in June that it would reconsider its business objectives and adjust the focus of its expansion plans. Moreover, due to challenging market conditions and operational issues, the company has postponed its initial public offering plans to next year.

Companies such as Volkswagen, Stellantis, and Mercedes-Benz are also readjusting their battery projects. In June, ACC, the joint venture between Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz, and TotalEnergies, announced the suspension of construction of its battery factories in Kaiserslautern, Germany, and Termoli, Italy, planning to adjust capacity to a lower-cost battery chemistry system. Thomas Schmall, Volkswagen Group's head of technology, stated to the media last month that the Volkswagen Group's battery factory plans are not set in stone but depend on the demand for electric vehicles.

Service Queries

Newest Market Intelligence

Reading Ranking